Americans United - textbookshttps://www.au.org/tags/textbooks
enTexas Textbook Troubles: Lone Star State Grapples With Tome Review Process – Againhttps://www.au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/texas-textbook-troubles-lone-star-state-grapples-with-tome-review-process
<a href="/about/people/rob-boston">Rob Boston</a><div class="field field-name-field-blog-type field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/blogs/wall-of-separation">Wall of Separation</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-callout field-type-text-long field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Worse yet, TFN learned that more than a dozen academics at Texas universities applied to be on the panels but were rejected. Among them are the chair of the History Department at Southern Methodist University and several faculty members at the University of Texas.</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="prose"><p>The news out of Texas is depressingly familiar.</p><p>The Lone Star State is in the process of reviewing public school social studies textbooks. Texas, as you might have noticed, is a large state. It has no shortage of first-class public and private universities. These institutions are full of scholars who have expertise in areas like history, civics, economics and so on.</p><p>Thus, it would seem that there would be absolutely no difficulty in finding qualified individuals in Texas to review these books. And there’s not. Many of these professors are eager to help and have volunteered their time.</p><p>Yet, a <a href="http://www.tfn.org/site/News2?page=NewsArticle&amp;id=8059">recent analysis</a> by the Texas Freedom Network (TFN) shows that out of more than 140 individuals appointed to the review panels, just three are current faculty members at Texas institutions of higher education.</p><p>Worse yet, TFN learned that more than a dozen academics at Texas universities applied to be on the panels but were rejected. Among them are the chair of the History Department at Southern Methodist University and several faculty members at the University of Texas.</p><p>So if these men and women aren’t getting slots on the panels, who is? TFN points out that “political activists and individuals without social studies degrees or teaching experience got places on the panels.”</p><p>One man who won a coveted slot is Mark Keough. Keough is not a professor. He’s currently seeking a seat in the Texas House of Representatives as a Republican. Keough, TFN notes, is a pastor who has degrees in theology – but he’s not a teacher and has no experience in social studies.</p><p>In fact, he seems woefully uniformed about some aspects of American history. TFN reports that Keough told the Montgomery County Tea Party that he does not “believe that there is a separation of church and state in the Constitution.”</p><p>“It is amazing that missing from these panels are many faculty members from our best universities who were willing to serve,” TFN President Kathy Miller said in a press statement. “Yet someone like Mr. Keough, who denies the existence of one of our country’s most important principles, is granted a platform he could use to play politics with the education of millions of Texas schoolchildren.”</p><p>Texas’ State Board of Education will vote on adopting the new books in November. For years, the Board has been caught up in “culture war” battles. Last year, creationists on the Board <a href="https://www.au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/biblical-biology-texas-state-board-of-education-continues-descent-into">pushed for books</a> “to strike the final blow to the teaching of evolution.”</p><p>The attempt to undermine the teaching of evolution in Texas public schools was aided and abetted by textbook reviewers who simply weren’t qualified to weigh in on real science.</p><p>After that embarrassing debacle, Board members approved a <a href="https://www.au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/textbook-case-texas-education-board-seeks-to-de-politicize-book-review">procedural change</a> designed to get more actual public school teachers front and center on the review panels. That was an important alteration, but it may not have gone far enough. There are more teachers on the panels this year, but these bodies continued to be littered with partisan activists whose top priority is sectarian indoctrination, not sound education.</p><p>Getting these people off the panels is the change Texas truly needs. </p></div></div><div class="tags clearfix"><div class="field-label">Issues:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><span class="field-item"><a href="/issues/bibles-and-religious-texts-curricula">Bibles and Religious Texts in Curricula</a></span></div></div><div class="tags clearfix"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/texas">Texas</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/social-studies">social studies</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/textbooks">textbooks</a></span></div></div>Fri, 25 Jul 2014 13:52:33 +0000Ms. Sarah Jones10282 at https://www.au.orghttps://www.au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/texas-textbook-troubles-lone-star-state-grapples-with-tome-review-process#commentsVictory In Louisiana!: State Ed. Board Approves Sound Biology Textbookshttps://www.au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/victory-in-louisiana-state-ed-board-approves-sound-biology-textbooks
<a href="/about/people/bathija">Sandhya Bathija</a><div class="field field-name-field-blog-type field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/blogs/wall-of-separation">Wall of Separation</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="prose"><p>It appears that the state of Louisiana has come finally come to its senses when it comes to science education.</p>
<p>The State Board of Elementary and Secondary Education (BESE) <a href="http://ncse.com/news/2010/12/biology-textbooks-approved-louisiana-006357">voted</a> 8-2 yesterday to approve high school biology textbooks that teach sound science, despite complaints by creationists who felt the books gave too much credibility to the theory of evolution.</p>
<p>Earlier this month, many observers thought the BESE was planning to cave to the Louisiana Family Forum, a Religious Right organization that promotes creationism including its current variant “intelligent design.” In response to the LFF’s comments and concerns about the newly proposed biology textbooks, the BESE <a href="http://blog.au.org/2010/11/11/louisiana-alert-family-forum-is-targeting-the-science-curriculum/">asked</a> a Textbook/Media/Library Advisory Council to review the books and make a recommendation.</p>
<p>Prior to the advisory council’s vote, Americans United was gearing up for a fight. But we were pleasantly surprised when the Council <a href="http://blog.au.org/2010/11/15/a-win-in-louisiana-textbook-council-backs-bona-fide-biology-books/">voted</a> 8-4 to urge the board to adopt the biology textbooks and disregard the LFF’s comments.</p>
<p>Then, on Tuesday, a committee of the board also<a href="http://lasciencecoalition.org/"> recommended</a> approval of the textbooks. Yesterday, the full board approved them.</p>
<p>The Louisiana Chapter of Americans United had submitted a letter to board members, asking them to approve the textbooks suggested by the Louisiana Life Sciences Textbook Adoption Committee and not heed the Religious Right’s demands.</p>
<p>“We understand that some public comments in this process suggested that evolution should be presented as controversial and intelligent design should be presented along with evolution,” the AU letter stated. “However, evolution is not controversial among scientists. And, as you know, the teaching of creationism in biology and other science classrooms has continuously been struck down by various state and federal courts. We ask that you not succumb to pressure and instead focus on the current and future needs of our state’s children by approving these textbooks.”</p>
<p>We’re happy that the BESE listened to reason and the scientific and educational communities. This is an especially sweet victory considering the anti-science climate we have previously faced in Louisiana.</p>
<p>In 2008, Gov. Bobby Jindal signed the “Science Education Act.” The law, pushed heavily by the LFF, allows teachers to introduce into the classroom “supplemental textbooks and other instructional materials” about evolution, the origins of life, global warming and human cloning. At the time, scientists and civil liberties activists, including AU, warned that this was just another attempt by creationists to sneak religion into public schools.</p>
<p>But at last, the state has done the right thing in heading off those attempts.</p>
<p>"The board's decision is a ray of sunlight," <a href="http://ncse.com/news/2010/12/biology-textbooks-approved-louisiana-006357">said</a> Eugenie C. Scott, executive director of the National Center for Science Education, "especially because the creationist opponents of these textbooks were claiming – wrongly – that the 2008 Louisiana Science Education Act requires that biology textbooks misrepresent evolution as scientifically controversial. It's refreshing to see that the board withstood the pressure to compromise the quality of biology textbooks in the state.”</p>
<p>While we certainly join in celebrating this huge win, we know the war over science education is still far from over in Louisiana.</p>
<p>As the <em>Times-Picayune</em> <a href="http://www.nola.com/education/index.ssf/2010/12/biology-textbook_debate_addres.html">states</a>, the BESE decision settles “the long-standing debate at the state level about how evolution should be portrayed in science texts,” but it still does not guarantee that local school districts will use the new textbooks in their classrooms.</p>
<p>Still, it’s nice to see that the LFF’s influence over public education is dwindling. Finally, Louisiana’s students can have a real chance at a solid education.</p>
</div></div><div class="tags clearfix"><div class="field-label">Issues:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><span class="field-item"><a href="/issues/religion-public-schools-and-universities">Religion in Public Schools and Universities</a></span></div></div><div class="tags clearfix"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/bese">BESE</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/biology-textbooks">biology textbooks</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/creationism">creationism</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/evolution">evolution</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/louisiana">louisiana</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/louisiana-family-forum">Louisiana Family Forum</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/louisiana-state-board-elementary-and-secondary-education">Louisiana State Board of Elementary and Secondary Education</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/national-center-science-education">National Center for Science Education</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/religion-public-schools-and-universities">Religion in Public Schools and Universities</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/textbooks">textbooks</a></span></div></div>Fri, 10 Dec 2010 17:34:15 +0000Sandhya Bathija2490 at https://www.au.orghttps://www.au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/victory-in-louisiana-state-ed-board-approves-sound-biology-textbooks#comments